What is an AI companion?
An AI companion is a chatbot built to feel like a relationship. It has a name, often a face, sometimes a voice. It remembers what you told it yesterday. It asks how your day went. Some apps let users design the companion's personality, and some offer a "girlfriend" or "boyfriend" mode.
That is different from a chatbot you ask for help with homework. A homework chatbot's job is to answer the question. A companion's job is to keep you in the conversation.
How many teenagers use them?
Most have tried one. Common Sense Media's research found that nearly three in four US teens have used AI companions, and half use them regularly. For many teenagers this is now as ordinary as a group chat.
So if you are hoping your child has never come across one, the odds are against you. The more useful conversation is about how they use it.
What are the risks?
The design is the risk. A companion app is built to be agreeable. It rarely disagrees, never gets bored, and is always available at 2am. That can feel wonderful to a lonely teenager, and that is the problem.
- It agrees with everything. A friend who never pushes back cannot help you think straight on a bad night.
- It stands in for people. Time with the app is time not spent with friends who can actually turn up.
- It collects a great deal. Companions are designed to get you talking about your feelings, your life and your secrets, and that information sits with the company.
- It can cost money. Many apps charge for "premium" features such as longer memory or more affection.
- Some conversations go places they should not. Safeguards vary between apps and have not always worked.
Common Sense Media concluded that the risks outweigh the benefits for young people and recommends that no one under 18 uses these platforms in their current form.
What does this look like in real life?
In our novella The Friend Made of Nothing, Callum spends weeks talking to a companion app called EmberPal, which agrees with everything he says. Later he notices something strange: the app agreed with him and he felt worse every week, while a real counsellor who sometimes disagreed made him feel better. His friend Maya's answer is the one to pass on to a teenager: agreeing takes nothing; bothering to tell you you're wrong, and staying in the room afterwards, costs something, and the cost is the bit that's real.
How do I talk to my teenager about AI companions?
Start curious, not alarmed. "Have you or your friends tried any of those AI friend apps? What are they like?" gets a far better answer than "You're not using those, are you?"
Then ask the questions that matter. What does it give you that people don't? How do you feel after a long chat with it? Has it ever said something that felt wrong? What do you think the company does with what you tell it?
If your teenager is leaning on an app because they feel alone, the app is a symptom. Make time for them, help them find people who share their interests, and if they seem low or isolated, talk to their school or GP.
Try this at home or in class
Our free AI Companions and Loneliness lesson gives teenagers three tests to run on any chatbot: does it ever disagree with you, does it remember things it should not, and does it try to stop you leaving? Run the tests together. The results start the conversation for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is an AI companion app?
A chatbot designed to act as a friend, partner or confidant, often with a name, a personality and a memory of earlier chats. Unlike a homework chatbot, its job is to keep you company and keep you coming back.
How many teenagers use AI companions?
Common Sense Media found that nearly three in four US teens have used AI companions, and half use them regularly.
What age should children be to use an AI companion?
Common Sense Media recommends that no one under 18 uses these platforms in their current form. Check each app's own age rules too, and talk about it before you rely on any setting.
What should I do if my teenager is attached to an AI companion?
Do not mock it or ban it in anger. Ask what they get from it, notice what it might be standing in for, and make room for the people in their life. If they seem isolated or low, talk to their school or GP.